Four James Wood High School athletes signed to compete at the NCAA Division III college level in a ceremony at the high school on Wednesday.
Jorel Baltimore will compete in track & field for Eastern Mennonite University in Harrisonburg. He will major in biology and minor in environmental science.
As a junior, Baltimore placed seventh in the 110-meter hurdles and 11th in the 300 hurdles in Class 4 and was fourth in Region 4D in the 300 hurdles. He posted the area’s best mark in the 300 hurdles (41.34; he’s lowered his time to 40.93 this season) and the No. 2 mark in the 110 hurdles (14.94).
EMU placed sixth at this year’s Old Dominion Athletic Conference indoor meet and sixth at last year’s ODAC outdoor meet.
Brayden Pineda will play soccer for Randolph College in Lynchburg and will major in business.
As a junior, the forward led the area with 22 goals and tied for second with 12 assists. He was a Region 4D Second Team and Northwestern District First Team selection. This season, he has four goals and two assists.
Randolph went 5-10-4 overall and 3-5-1 in the ODAC last fall.
Claire Keefer will play volleyball for King’s College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. She will study elementary education.
A hitter, Keefer earned Second Team All-Region 4D and First Team All-Northwestern District honors this year. She ranked 10th in the area in blocks per set (0.49, 47 total).
King’s College went 16-12 overall and 2-5 in the in the Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom Division last year.
Reese Lessard will play soccer and run track for Eastern Mennonite and will major in sports psychology.
A starting defender, Lessard contributed to nine shutouts last year and four this season. In track, Lessard ran on James Wood’s 4×200 relay team that set a school record (1:48.83) and placed ninth in Class 4 during indoor track. Lessard placed ninth in the 300 (44.95) in Region 4D indoor track. Lessard has a top 400 time of 1:03.85 this spring and is a member of James Wood’s 4×400 team.
In soccer, the Royals went 6-11-1 overall and 4-6 in the ODAC in the fall. In track, EMU placed 10th at the ODAC indoor meet this year and eighth at the ODAC outdoor meet last year.
— Compiled by Robert Niedzwiecki